What sidearm do you carry when hunting?

[OldBroad44]

i suppose this would be as good a place as any to ask if my 9mm would do me any good if i had to use it on a big cat. dont think i would want to stumble on one personally though.

Cougars are not particularly difficult to kill, being lightly built with no thick boney slanted skull plates that a bullet may fail to penetrate or ricochet off of. Generally anything you carry in caliber or bullet type that is suitable for SD against humans is suitable for cougars. As with any handgun caliber, if the animal is right on you or nearly on you you need a shot to the brain or spine to stop it instantly. And unless the animal is stopped instantly it can kill you several times over while dying. But the same is also true of a .44mag. Even many deer with hearts destroyed by rifle rounds may run more than 100 yards before collapsing.

I think the major weakness of the 9mm for SD against cougars is that where there are cougars there are also usually black bears. And the 9mm loaded with hp bullets will likely fail to penetrate a black bear skull. And 9mm round nose bullets are more likely to ricochet off the skull if bear is shot head on. Your best bet is a round flat nose hard cast or Keith style semiwadcutter hardcast. Its likely to penetrate nicely. Some people would sneer at any 9mm bullet for SD against black bears. I wouldn't. The more usual choices of handgun calibers for SD against black bears still require brain shots to incapacitate the animal instantly, which is critical if the animal is right on you or nearly so. And you might be more able to land that brain shot with a light recoiling gun with lots more than six rounds available. I'd feel comfortable with a high capacity 9mm with hard cast bullets for SD against either cougars or black bears. But against grizzlies not so. But we have no grizzlies here in Western Oregon. The 9mm also has serious advantages if you are attacked by a pack of feral humans, dogs, whatever. And one could argue a high caoacity 9mm is a better complement for a rifle, with the rifle providing serious power and long-distance capability and the 9mm capable of dealing with larger numbers.

Note there is a good bit of personal opinion involved in what is adequate for SD against whatever. Some people feel comfortable only with a rifle for SD against cougars or black bears. Most people are fine with a .357 mag up or a 10mm up. But when @Ura-Ki 's brother was attacked by a cougar while they were fishing, it was a good thing Ura-Ki was someone who believed in carrying a rifle for SD, as the cougar was far enough away to make it hard to hit with a handgun without risking hitting his brother. The brother had, BTW, put several 9mm shots into the body of the cougar, which didnt appear to notice and continued the attack. No surprise. If a bear or cougar is already on you only a head or spine shot is likely to incapacite him fast enough to save you.

Stories about .44 mag and even .308 and other rifle rounds failing to stop bears generally don't give the bullet type. For a hp rifle bullet or 44 mag hp its no surprise if it fails to penetrate. Bullet style MATTERS.

 

[OldBroad44]

...But the odds of running into a man eating lion is like winning the lottery. Even bayed in the rocks they dont want much to do with the man scents.

Tell that to our resident cougar. She prefers our residential enclave to the nearby MacDonald Forest from whence she likely came. The Forestry people posted signs in the neighborhood saying there had been cougar sightings in our area. "Right," we said. "We guessed. Something about when she came up on one residents back deck and made swipes at the glass sliding door where the cat stood beyond indoors. And by the huge tracks in gardens, occasional screams, and deer kill remains. And the cubs of course."

Everyone in this neighborhood has guns, so we aren't worried about our cougar. She hides in daytime and only comes out at night. She has never done anything rude like stalk anybody. As for her cubs wandering around in broad daylight that time.... Well, what mother has never lost control of her offspring? We aren't going to be the first to throw any stones. Meanwhile, our deer overpopulation has greatly lessened... Its really very nice.

 

[RVTECH]

 

[OldBroad44]

Wolves are the only animal on earth that kills for fun, other than people.

I carry a G34/17, but I will probably be buying a G20 to take over that spot this year.
It amazes me you guys that don't carry a back up in the woods. Even if I go on a day hime a pack. Not for the cougars, wolves, badgers, etc it's a the two legged beast that roam among us

Not so. Even just among mammals, domestic cats, lions, cheetahs, leopards, honey badgers, dolphins, and orcas may kill more animals than they need for food or kill without eating the animal at all. So said an internet article. Farmers can tell you that many dogs also do. A pack of feral dogs may maim or kill dozens of sheep.. And we've bred rat terriers for it. And a fox in the chicken yard might kill the entire flock.

Wolves are not especially noted for "surplus killing." A recent study showed that wolves usually eat on all the animals killed, usually eating about 80% of the total available food. They may kill enough animals for several days, however, but abandon the leftovers if humans come to the kill site.

Surplus killing and killing for fun describe the same facts but have different ethical flavors. The way I look at it is predators have prey catching drives. Such drives create pleasure when satisfied. So the predator who has had little opportunity to satisfy predatory drives might go hunting even when not hungry. And might kill more than he can eat through pent up need to satisfy the hunting and killing drives. Part of the predatory drive in many predators is the instinct to catch critters that run. Some critters like dogs or foxes go a bit crazy catching and killing every rat or chicken that runs. Probably a valuable instinct, as rats frequently live in social groups. And killing all you can as fast as possible when you dig up a batch is useful as they are small and you need lots to make a meal. Yet many wolves live mostly on rats and mice and other small critters in spring and summer.

 

[OldBroad44]

Yep, back on point. Again I'll say .357 S&W stainless magnum. I found out the hard way that the .45 acp was lacking in a bad way when it came to a moment with a huge, angry, wounded boar blackbear. Just saying.

Using what style bullet? And shot in the head or elsewhere?

 

[DeanMk]

I carry a GP100 in .44 Special.

"Skeeter" loads?

 

[Bon Sauvage]

"Skeeter" loads?

It's an excellent load alright but I mostly shoot 200 gr bullets. I got lots.

 

[Burpboxhero]

None

 

[rdb241]

None

not very wise...........

 

[Porter]

Glock 20 with underwood loads in a Kenei chest holster..

 

[Burpboxhero]

not very wise...........

Nah, I'm not hunting with scissors and paper.

 

[JRuby]

I carry a 38 4" k-frame. My rifle does the majority of the work. My revolver is for safety, a finishing shot or small game if needed. I use 158g xtp loaded to ÷p. Few handguns can perform to the level of a good hunting rifle.

 

[No_Regerts]

Nah, I'm not hunting with scissors and paper.

I often wonder what I'd solve with a handgun that I couldn't solve more dramatically with a rifle. So, I don't bother carrying a pistol when I have a rifle.

 

[Member 34319]

None

Exactly, your literally caring a rifle!

 

[ZigZagZeke]

22. In case I see a grouse out deer or elk hunting use to carry a 44 mag but got tired of the weight.

The 44 mag would kill, gut, and skin your grouse all at the same time.

 

[osprey]

Why a sidearm with a rifle? Well I can answer that. I hunt elk around some of the more Grizzly dense populations in the lower 48. Quartering and boning out an elk with a capable sidearm at hand is a whole lot more reassuring even with a rifle at ready a few feet away. We try and get bodies at the kill site and keep one guy on watch but this is not always possible. Due to circumstances I quartered and boned a bull elk by myself in this country a few years back and it was a bit nerve racking but it was made better with my sidearm at ready. I always figure it could become basically hand to paw/fang combat and even if you got to your rifle it may be knocked away before it could be employed. A sidearm can be wielded much easier in these circumstances.

 

[Koda]

Why a sidearm hunting, cougars like to stalk from behind. A handgun is more wielding at close range than a hunting rifle and most pistols have more capacity. The best hunting times are sunrise and sunset so Ive had too many days hiking into and out of my hunts in the dark.
Lots of situations where a sidearm is ideal out there.

 

[Spitpatch]

I walk in woods and prairie after dark knowing i am the human and can assert myself as such on any trail against any foe. (Even human.)

In Alaska where I carried a centerfire sidearm, it was when I hunted with bow and arrow.

I am not afraid in the wild. I am in my most comfortable home.

None of this speaks for my attitude and preparation where I might meet humans in any quantity.

 

[Certaindeaf]

Any will do. Seeing a fudd's head explode is priceless.

 

[ZigZagZeke]

I hunt lion country for deer and I'm on the stand in the pitch black and often getting to the truck again well after dark. The ranches where I hunt are also relatively close to civilization (tweakers) and at the same time isolated. For these reasons a .357 Mag on my belt is comforting when things go bump in the night.